U.S. Measles Cases Reach Highest Level Since 1991 as Ohio and Texas Declare New Outbreaks
How left and right are reading this
- Both agree
- Elimination achieved in 2000 is being lost, unvaccinated people are bearing nearly all the infections, and the deaths of two children in 2025 count as a genuine failure.
- They split on
- Whether the story is about domestic vaccination coverage sliding under 95% and leaving the youngest exposed, or about who is accountable when infection arrives from abroad.
The Facts
- The CDC reported 2,318 U.S. measles cases as of July 23, the highest single-year total since 1991 and above the 2,289 cases recorded in all of 2025.
- Ohio Department of Health Director Bruce Vanderhoff declared the state's third measles outbreak of 2026 on Thursday, involving four unvaccinated people — three in Ashtabula County and one in Tuscarawas County — ranging in age from 4 to 30.
- State and local health departments are conducting contact tracing and exposure notification in the affected areas; the Tuscarawas County case was linked to an exposure at an event at Smokey Lane Stables in Sugarcreek on July 17.
- Texas health officials declared an outbreak in Montgomery County after four unvaccinated members of one family were infected by a traveler who entered the state with measles; one woman in her twenties was hospitalized, and the state warned additional cases may occur.
- Health officials attribute the rise in cases to vaccination coverage falling below the 95% threshold associated with community immunity; Mississippi reported eight counties with kindergarten vaccination rates under 95%, and Michigan officials cited higher rates of vaccine waivers.
- Most reported infections in the current U.S. outbreaks have involved unvaccinated people, and officials are urging families to update immunizations before the school year begins, with some Michigan schools reopening as early as Aug. 17.
- Measles was declared eliminated in the United States in 2000; three people died of measles in 2025, including two children, the first U.S. measles deaths in more than a decade.
- Cases are also rising outside the U.S.: Bangladesh's health directorate reported more than 128,000 suspected and roughly 16,000 laboratory-confirmed cases since March 15, with hundreds of deaths from suspected measles, while Singapore recorded 40 cases through July, its highest total since 2020.
- Individual states and counties are reporting continued spread beyond the declared outbreaks, including 98 cases in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, a confirmed case in Barbour County, West Virginia, and a possible exposure alert in Maryland tied to an out-of-state visitor.
Context
What counts as a measles "outbreak"?
Public health agencies define an outbreak as three or more related cases WTRF,Medical Daily. Ohio's latest cluster of four linked cases across two counties met that threshold, as did the four linked family cases in Montgomery County, Texas Record-Courier,Medical Daily.
Why does the 95% vaccination figure keep coming up?
Officials describe 95% coverage as the level needed for community, or herd, immunity. Mississippi State Health Officer Dr. Dan Edney said that "when you drop below 95% of community immunity, then that's when measles can and will come back," and eight Mississippi counties are currently below that mark for kindergarten vaccination WTVA 9 Tupelo. Reporting on the national increase similarly links it to coverage falling below 95% Record-Courier.
How does measles spread, and what should people watch for?
Measles spreads through the air when an infected person breathes, coughs or sneezes, and the virus can remain in the air for up to two hours after that person leaves an area WMAR. Michigan's chief medical executive, Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, called it "one of the most transmissible diseases on the planet" WDIV. Symptoms include high fever, cough, runny nose, red or watery eyes and a rash; health departments advise contacting a provider before arriving in person WKBN,WBOY.com.
Facts first. Then every angle.
The day’s biggest stories in one short brief — the facts everyone agrees on, then the competing values behind the headlines. Free in your inbox.
View all 38 sources
Independent coverage (38)
About these frames
See this differently than someone you know would? Two ways to keep it going.
The dial works on any URL — paste an article you read elsewhere this week.